You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join our community today!

If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact contact us.

Is Bravo's top star moving to Gen-TV?
---Sources claim Lisa Vanderpump in talks for A.M. Live gig

Hollywood Today

Although officials at Gen-TV offered no comment on the continuing search to find replacement hosts for flagship talk show "A.M. Live", sources close to Gen-TV tell us that one big name is indeed in talks for the gig, and is hellbent on getting it.

According to industry insiders who work at Gen-TV (in roles we won't disclose for privacy) Lisa Vanderpump, star of Bravo's popular "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" and "Vanderpump Rules" is desperate to land the hosting gig on "A.M. Live" as she hopes to exit Bravo and reality TV all-together for a more respectable career as a talk show host. Our sources, some of whom are friendly with Vanderpump say "Lisa is tired of the drama that surrounds you when you are on reality TV. She wants to have a more relaxing life and believes she can achieve this by landing the A.M. Live gig." "She wants to be like Kelly Ripa."

Our sources inform us that while Vanderpump is interested in the gig, there doesn't seem to be much interest from Gen-TV who apparently are already fielding offers from "multiple A-List parties, many of whom are much more famous than Lisa Vanderpump."

The chances of Vanderpump snagging the gig? Less than 50% say our sources who tell us that Gen-TV is possibly looking to change the format of the show to more closely resemble "Good Morning America" and that they may be seeking names more closely associated with hardcore news instead of reality TV. One name being bandied about is Connie Chung, who has been retired from news since 2006 when she co-hosted a weekend show with husband Maury Povich on MSNBC. Our sources claim that "Connie Chung has the exact right personality Gen-TV is looking for; she has a hard news background, a lively, engaging and slightly quirky personality and is a well known news anchor."

Another source claims that Gen-TV may go a different route and hire two male co-hosts; with Ryan Seacrest, Neil Patrick Harris and Simon Cowell all being named as potential co-hosts. One name that apparently won't be on that list of potential co-hosts is Josh Elliot; a well known news personality who despite recently exiting NBC News will not accept the role and has reportedly declined the job already.

A.M. Live Update--Vanderpump Rejected by Gen-TV

Despite her apparent desperation to land the hosting gig on "A.M. Live", Lisa Vanderpump of Bravo's "Real Housewives" franchise will not be moving to Gen-TV anytime soon. A source connected to Gen-TV confirms to Hollywood Now that Lisa Vanderpump has officially been passed over for the job by Gen-TV, who are said to be in active negotiations with "A-Listers who carry more clout, more fame and more good will than any Real Housewive could ever bring with them."

Details: Fear returns on Monday nights with a brand new season of Fear Factor and Living in Fear. Leading off the night is Fear Factor: Flashback, which features old episodes with never before see clips, as well as new commentary.

Details: 30 Seconds to Win will make its debut in the lead off timeslot. Veteran summer comedy Extended Family and long-running Raising Teenagers inherit the 9 o'clock hour. Friends of Mine comes back in a new later hour, paired with new comedy Upselling. To prepare for its summer timeslot, the series will air a sneak peak, prior to the two hour season finale of Call Girls. Those two episodes will air again the following day.

Details: Outdoor Renovation will air four episodes per week, leading into new docu-series Life After Prison. The one hour series will follow two felons per week and document their life after being released from prison.

Sunday, March 19th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Mother & Daughter eased to 7.48 million viewers and 1.5/5 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week to tie its series low. Unrounded number: 1.542

At 830pm, a new episode of Suburbia scored 7.26 million viewers and 1.5/5 among adults 18-49, even with last week. Unrounded: 1.502

At 9pm, a new episode of Full Time Mom slid to 9.01 million viewers and 1.9/6 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week. Unrounded: 1.923

At 930pm, a new episode of Life Lessons rose to 8.29 million viewers and 1.7/5 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week. Unrounded: 1.735

At 10pm, a new episode of Virus notched 7.48 million viewers and 3.1/7 among adults 18-49, even for the third week in a row. Half hour: 3.096/3.142

Monday, March 20th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Revolution ticked down to 5.85 million viewers and 1.4/6 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week to tie its series low. Half hour: 1.400/1.497

At 9pm, a new episode of Call Girls fell to 13.02 million viewers and 5.4/11 among adults 18-49, down two tenths from last week to tie its season low (and lowest rating since March 2014). Half hour: 5.378/5.395

At 10pm, a new episode of The High Times of Denver inched up to 4.63 million viewers and 2.1/7 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week. Retention from its lead in was 36% among total viewers and 39% in the demo. More below. Unrounded: 2.132

At 1030pm, a new episode of The High Times of Denver garnered 3.98 million viewers and 1.8/6 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last weeks 1030 episode. Unrounded: 1.819

Tuesday, March 21st Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Looking for Love jumped to 8.37 million viewers and 2.4/7 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week for a season high. Its also the shows best rating since the season 13 finale in December 2015. Half hour: 2.414/2.436

At 9pm, a new episode of TAKEN: Global continued its ugly downward trend, dipping to 6.38 million viewers and 1.0/4 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week to a new series low (and for the second straight week). Since a 1.6 on January 31st, the numbers have gotten worse by the week: 1.4/1.3/1.2/1.1/1.0 Half hour: 1.034/1.051

At 10pm, a new episode of TAKEN rose to 11.14 million viewers and 2.0/7 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from from last week. The 200th episode airs next week, with the crossover event two weeks away. Half hour numbers: 1.956/1.943

Production on the first six episodes of "Single Again" has been complete and will air on TV One soon. However, due to the Presidential inauguration coverage has been pushed back one week from January 20th to January 27th. Casting for the series regulars has also been complete and Gen-TV is proud to announce that Gen-TV favorite Kim Coles (Living Single; Gen-TV's The Arrival) has joined the cast in the final regular role of Sheree. Sheree is described as "nearing 60, a recent divorcee who despite being very financially wealthy thanks to a recent divorce from husband number three, has decided to move in with Rachelle who she has been best friends with since they were 30."

"1-2-3 Cook":

This series starting airing on A&E in October 2016 and has become a massive success. In its first five airings in primetime it has averaged over 2.34 million viewers and a 6.2 in the 18-49 demo. This puts it on-par to become the highest rated unscripted program on television today and puts it in contention to finish the year as the #3 program overall on cable for the entire year after AMC's "The Walking Dead" and A&E's "Duck Dynasty."

This series has also done well on weekday daytime airings where it is averaging 279,000 viewers each weekday. This puts it on-par to be the #1 rated daytime show on cable and the #1 cooking series on television. It has already won major awards from the American Teacher's Associations, The American Educational Society, The James Beard Foundation and The American Cable Television Association. It has been named by Time Magazine as one of the "Best Shows on Television" and by NPR as one of the "Fifteen Most Important Series In Broadcasting History."

The series is so successful currently that the hosts, Amanda Freitag and Alton Brown are currently on a 50+ city tour where they host live mini-episodes of the show. Ticket sales for these shows are currently the #1 best seller on Ticket Master and it is the most successful non-musical or theater show in America right now.

Despite a cast of fairly well known performers like Heather Locklear, Nia Peeples (mistakenly identified as Nia Pebbles in an earlier article); and Serena Scott Thomas Bravo TV's newest scripted drama produced in part by Gen-TV tanked hard in its Sunday premiere. The series debuted to 260,000 viewers and netted a .76 in demos.

For the entire evening, the series ranked #76 out of 250 shows airing on basic, ad-supported cable, and #56 among its 67 timeslot rivals. If the show sustains these numbers for the remainder of the season, it would still rank as the lowest performing scripted series Bravo has ever aired; and would put it near the bottom of the list among all of Bravo's programming for the last year; with only "There Goes The Motherhood", "Timber Creek Lodge" and "Real Housewives of Dallas" ranking lower.

Luckily for the cast and crew of the series, Bravo has already commissioned two additional seasons of 13-episodes apiece. So the program will live beyond its initial 13-episode order despite these ratings.

"Texas Law":

This scripted drama, an in-name-only spin-off of "Hollywood Law" featuring the drama surrounding a Texas branch of the same law firm featured in "Hollywood Law" will debut in national syndication starting the week of January 8th. Although Harry Hamlin from "Hollywood Law" will make a one-off cameo on the show to set it up, the regular cast of the series will feature nobody from "Hollywood Law". The cast of this series includes Jason Lee, Kadee Strickland, Brooke Langton and Adam "Edge" Copeland.

Lifetime Television scored fantastic ratings for two reality programs produced by Gen-TV Studios. "Please, Fix My House" an unscripted home improvement/fix it series hosted by former "Trading Spaces" cast members Paige Davis and Doug Wilson scored fantastic ratings for Lifetime when it premiered on October 8th. It drew 2.5 million viewers and a 2.8 in demos, during its first airing. A second original episode an hour later drew 2.8 million/3.2 18-49.

Meanwhile, airing on Friday, October 7th the primetime series premiere of "Celebrity Dreamhouse Project" was watched by 11.3 million viewers and netted a 4.7 in demos. It ranked as the #2 most watched cable program on Friday night and #12 on cable for the entire week.

Gen-TV Studios News:First Run Series Updates

Gen-TV Studios is proud to announce the following status updates for several programs produced by Gen-TV Studios for first run on other broadcasting outlets:

"Single Again":

Gen-TV Studios is proud to announce details for the second season of "Single Again"; a comedy series about newly single roommates who all happen to be middle aged and single again for the first time since their 20's.

The programs first 40-episodes debuted in January 2017 and completed airing on March 17th (2017). The series averaged 1.89 million viewers/3.8 in demos. Starring Jasmine Guy, Kim Fields, Robin Givens, Elise Neal and Kim Coles it ranks as the #3 rated TV series among African-American viewers in households (#1 is Black-ish on ABC and #2 is a tie between ABC's How To Get Away with Murder and BET's Being Mary Jane.) The series is also the #2 series among African-American Females aged 25-40, with #1 being FOX's Empire.

TV One plans to air the second batch of 40-episodes between May and August 2017. This is in line with the series original order of 200 episodes to be spread out over 5 seasons of 40 episodes each.

"1-2-3 Cook:"

A&E announced today that Gen-TV Studios produced cooking series "1-2-3 Cook" will start airing its second season in May 2017. The series averaged over 9 million viewers in its primetime airings between October 2016 and February 2017. In its daytime airings, the series reached over 2 million viewers in the same time period.

The first season contained 60 episodes, and the second season will contain 45 episodes. When the series was bought by A&E, it was for a 3-season order of 150 episodes.

The interactive and instructional cooking series is hosted by Amanda Freitag and Alton Brown.

"Faded Beauties":

Despite lackluster ratings in season 1, Bravo TV will go ahead and air previously ordered second and third seasons of the modeling themed nighttime soap opera starring Serena Scott Thomas, Heather Locklear and Nia Peeples.

Despite averaging just under 1 million viewers and a .82 in demos, while airing between January and February 2017, Bravo will air a second season of 13-episodes between June and July 2017.

However, there is a catch; Bravo has asked Gen-TV Studios to make some casting adjustments. Nia Peeples is being axed from the show and is being replaced by two different characters; who will be played by Model/Actress Stephanie Seymour (Angel, Models Inc.,) and Charisma Carpenter (Scream Queens, The Lying Game, Angel, Buffy The Vampire Slayer). Peeples character will be written out of the series by having moved out of the country.

"Texas Law":

Gen-TV Studios is announcing that they will not be producing a second season of first-run drama "Texas Law", a legal procedural series about Texas lawyers. The series averaged only 100,000 viewers in its freshmen season which aired January 8, 2017-February 20, 2017.

"Celebrity Dreamhouse Project and Please, Fix My House":

Lifetime TV has announced second season renewals for Gen-TV Studios produced reality series "Celebrity Dreamhouse Project" and "Please, Fix My House", both of which scored huge ratings when they aired in Fall 2016.

"Celebrity Dreamhouse Project" follows a group of celebrities who are building houses for Habitat for Humanity while also competing to win cash and prizes for a family who will become the owners of the newly built home. It averaged over 15 million viewers over its first season. Lifetime will air a second season of 20 episodes starting in May 2017 and completing in August 2017. Alyssa Milano will be replaced as host by Chrissy Tiegen.

"Please, Fix My House", a home renovation series hosted by Paige Davis and Doug Wilson averaged over 4 million viewers in its first season and will return with a new batch of 40 episodes to air between April and August 2017.

"Upselling & Life After Prison":

YTN Network still holds the rights to scripted comedy "Upselling" and reality docudrama "Life After Prison" and is said to be working on scheduling them soon. They were both leased to YTN network from Gen-TV Studios last fall.

A Hollywood Now Expose:Gen-TV's Bubble Shows---Pros, Cons and Final Predictions of Unrenewed Shows

Gen-TV Network has seven series left waiting to be renewed or cancelled; most of these will likely wait until Gen-TV's Fall 2017 schedule is finalized and announced at UpFronts in May. Hollywood Now has been doing some extensive digging and here is what we've found out and what we are predicting is going to be the outcome for these series:

"Outside The Lines":

PROS & CONS:

PROS:

The premise of this series, about a retired Nascar driver who takes over child rearing his siblings children seems to have mass appeal, with a built in revenue stream from Nascar, which in a unlikely deal has become an official sponsor of the show, underwriting the entire first season for extra publicity. This may be the deciding factor in the series future, does Nascar see any benefit from underwriting another season? Do the ratings of the series add any benefit to Nascar?

Seemingly, there is something about this show that could appeal to parents and children. Men and women could find reason to enjoy this show; Men might watch for the frequent guest appearances from professional race car drivers, who often cameo as themselves. This is one feature the show has going for it; in fact, a recent episode featuring Danica Patrick as herself ranks as the series highest ratings peak so far.

CONS:

This ultra-traditional sitcom starring Jason Priestley as a retired race car driver turned dad to three children hasn't done particularly well in the ratings and has gotten very little critical support. Most reviewers called it redundant or unoriginal. A particularly harsh review from the NY Times called it "The freshmen series this season that is least likely to warrant your attention, your time or any further discussion beyond this review." "The writing is flat, lifeless and poorly conceived as to feel amateurish." "There is not an original idea in the entire pilot episode and it seems like there isn't anywhere else for this show to go."

In terms of freshmen comedy on Gen-TV this season, "Outside The Lines" is the lowest rated (excluding already cancelled series "Keke Fabulous" and "Going South"). Among all of Gen-TV's comedy series currently airing, it ranks only above "Threesome" and "Every Other Weekend", both of which already got renewed.

These ratings surely aren't giving Nascar any reason to think the show deserves another season of their support; it is likely costing them money. Gen-TV can probably do better ratings wise, and certainly critically. There does not seem to be much benefit to keeping this series.

Predictions:

Hollywood Now doesn't see much future for this show. The only potential saving grace would be Nascar deciding that the series fanbase is large enough to justify underwriting another season; basically giving Gen-TV a comedy to air for nearly free. Should this happen, it is likely Gen-TV would bury this show on Friday or Saturday night; freeing up a more lucrative timeslot for a series with more potential.

But bottom line is that a renewal is not likely here.

"Peretti Rules":

PROS:

One of the few Gen-TV comedies that gets universal acclaim from critics; Peretti was nominated for the National Board of Review Award and won a Critics Choice TV Award for writing the show. Most of Gen-TV's acclaim comes from its drama series and TV Movies.

Female viewers seem to like this show, and it is the #4 rated series overall among Female Viewers 18-25.

CONS:

Outside of that demo, nobody else is watching this show. It is one of the lowest rated shows on TV among Male viewers, and dead last among Black Viewers 18-25.

Chelsea Peretti has other jobs including her gig on Fox's "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" and comedy specials for Netflix, Epix and HBO. She has already expressed a desire to have a less hectic schedule and has predicted cancellation for the series. It seems unlikely that a show whose lead star is asking for cancellation would be renewed.

Predictions:

Despite low ratings and star woes, we think critical acclaim will save this show and it will return in mid-season as a filler show. Sources tell us that Ross Chin is a fan of the series and sees potential in keeping it.

"The Malones":

PROS:

The pros of this show are plenty, though it may not seem so at first glance. First off, it is the spin-off of TV's #1 rated show by far, "The Mallory's of Jefferson County". It generates more publicity than any other show on TV, aside from "Mallory's" and is doing epically well overseas, where it is breaking ratings barriers in many countries; including Germany, England, Australia and Japan.

CONS:

Nobody is watching this show stateside. Ratings are at embarrassingly low levels and for a show this expensive to produce the benefits of overseas success may not be enough to save it.

Critics have abandoned the show. After glowing reviews in the first half of the season; particularly for its pilot episode the notices have trended downward since then.

Perhaps the biggest con; sources indicate that Ross Chin is not a fan of this show and with him driving programming decisions now, it seems unlikely it'll return. We hear that Chin sees this show as wasted potential and wants to free up space on the schedule for newer programs that will generate more publicity stateside.

Prediction:

This show is extremely unlikely to return for another season. It is as close to cancellation as it gets.

"Code Of Ethics":

PROS:

It has a huge movie star attached as its lead star in Hillary Swank. It has mega-producer Stephen Bochco attached as its Executive Producer. This is the man that created "LA Law", "Hill Street Blues" and "NYPD Blue"; a man that knows police drama.

CONS:

Ratings have been inconsistent; some episodes trending as high as 15 million viewers and some as low as 5 million viewers. They seem to have steadied out in recent months. But that may not be enough.

Sources are telling us that Executives at Gen-TV are generally supportive of this show and see the potential in a renewal, but that development of pilots will be the deciding factor for this show.

Prediction:

It really is a case of 50/50 with this one, it could go either way. Our final prediction tells us that it'll get cancelled though.

"Gen-TV Original Movies":

Our predictions haven't changed for this one since we first reported on this topic nearly a month ago.

Pros: Gen-TV has won numerous awards for its stellar slate of original films and mini-series. They are one of the few broadcasters that still produce TV films at this volume. Numbers for many of these films have been stellar.

Cons: Gen-TV still has not renewed the franchise for another season. In fact they seem to be downshifting focus on these projects.

Our sources at Gen-TV are telling us that no decision has been made about this franchise, but that Ross Chin generally likes the idea of producing TV films. He has a film background as he did an internship at Paramount Features in the early 1990's; so he could really do some good with this franchise and attract some A-List directors.

Prediction: Despite Ross Chin's connections we still think the network will still produce TV films and mini-series, but at a drastically reduced volume. And probably on a much cheaper budget.

"Intrusion":

Pros: Joan Allen leads a fantastic cast. A stellar and cleverly produced premise.

Cons: Nobody watches this show, nobody talks about this show. Ratings for the show are near the bottom of the TV Ratings. Only CBS's "Ransom" and CW's "No Tomorrow" rank lower than "Intrusion".

Wednesday, March 15th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Boston General slid to 7.46 million viewers and 1.2/4 among adults 18-49, down two tenths from last week. Half hour: 1.194/1.292

At 9pm, a new episode of CIA Files eased to 13.97 million viewers and 3.4/12 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week. Half hour: 3.423/3.384

At 10pm, week ten of Amazon slid to 6.81 million viewers and 1.4/4 among adults 18-49, down two tenths from last week. Retention from its lead in was 49% among total viewers and 41% in the demo. Half hour: 1.598/1.205

Thursday, March 16th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Behind the Scenes garnered 8.16 million viewers and 2.0/7 among adults 18-49, even with last week. Unrounded: 2.041

At 830pm, a new episode of Blended held at 6.23 million viewers and 1.7/5 among adults 18-49, even with last last week. Unrounded: 1.693

At 9pm, a new episode of The Hughes Family inched up to 10.57 million viewers and 2.8/8 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week. Unrounded: 2.785

At 9pm, week nine of Growing Up at 30 dipped to 6.64 million viewers and 1.7/6 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week to a new low. Unrounded: 1.736

At 10pm, a new episode of TAKEN: Phoenix rose to 9.60 million viewers and 1.6/6 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week. Half hour: 1.601/1.561

Friday, March 17th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Secret Service scored 4.63 million viewers and 0.6/3 among adults 18-49, even with last week. Half hour: 0.597/0.645

At 9pm, a new episode of Serve and Protect: Detroit slipped to 8.01 million viewers and 0.9/3 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week. Half hour: 0.921/0.924

At 10pm, a new episode of Cops of New York fell to 10.04 million viewers and 1.2/4 among adults 18-49, down two tenths from last week. Half hour: 1.213/1.246

YTN shored up its schedule for next season, renewing four more series that will return during the 2017-2018 television season.

Now in its fourth season, Virus continues to dominate the television landscape and breaking television records. The season premiere scored a massive 4.1 L+SD (6.4 L+7), a new series high for the series - and the third year in a row the show grew season premiere to season premiere. It has been renewed for a 16 episode fifth season, the largest order in the shows history.

Long-running dating reality series Looking for Love is in the midst of its best season since season twelve in May 2015 - averaging a 2.1 L+SD (2.8 L+7) in its sixteenth season. The show will return for two more seasons, once again with one in the fall and one in the spring.

The veteran Friday night police procedural Cops of New York will return for its eighth season in the fall. Cops of New York is averaging 1.4 L+SD, down only 7% year-to-year - one of the best holds for any drama in the 10 o'clock timeslot.

Finally, sophomore comedy Blended is bringing more laughs next season with a third season order. Shifting to 830 earlier this year, Blended is improving the timeslot by nearly 30% compared to the fall timeslot occupant.

Interim YTN President Paul Johnson said, "We are proud to announce these renewals today. All four series have demonstrated excellent storylines while continuing to deliver in the ratings."

Sunday, March 26th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Mother & Daughter jumped to 7.95 million viewers and 1.6/5 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last weeks series low. Unrounded: 1.624

At 830pm, a new episode of on-the-bubble Suburbia eased to 6.89 million viewers and 1.4/5 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week. Unrounded: 1.439

At 9pm, a new episode of Full Time Mom notched 9.23 million viewers and 1.9/6 among adults 18-49, even with last week. Unrounded: 1.896

At 930pm, a new episode of Life Lessons slid to 7.91 million viewers and 1.6/5 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week. Unrounded: 1.615

At 10pm, a new episode of Virus scored 7.38 million viewers and 3.1/7 among adults 18-49, even for the fourth straight week. Half hour: 3.024/3.169

Monday, March 27th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Revolution garnered 5.70 million viewers and 1.4/6 among adults 18-49, even with last weeks series low. Half hour: 1.423/1.456

At 9pm, a new episode of Call Girls totaled 13.18 million viewers and 5.4/11 among adults 18-49, even with last weeks season low. Half hour: 5.395/5.478

At 10pm, a new episode of The High Times of Denver dipped to 4.36 million viewers and 1.9/7 among adults 18-49, down two tenths from last week. Retention from its lead in was 33% among total viewers and 34% in the demo. More below. Unrounded: 1.860

At 1030pm, a new episode of The High Times of Denver slipped to 3.71 million viewers and 1.6/6 among adults 18-49, down two tenths from last weeks 1030 episode. Unrounded: 1.623

Tuesday, March 28th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Looking for Love jumped to 8.79 million viewers and 2.5/7 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week to set a new season high for the second straight week. Half hour: 2.510/2.451

At 9pm, a new episode of TAKEN: Global rose to 7.61 million viewers and 1.3/4 among adults 18-49, up three tenths from last weeks season low. As part of the crossover event, TAKEN: Global will air on Wednesday at 10. Half hour: 1.313/1.355

At 10pm, the 200th episode of TAKEN advanced to 12.15 million viewers and 2.3/7 among adults 18-49, up three tenths from from last weeks episode for its best performance since the season premiere (2.4). The three-part crossover event begins with TAKEN next week. Half hour numbers: 2.329/2.316

Gen-TV Orders More Pilots
---Studio to double amount of pilots ordered this season

In an aggressive move to find suitable programming; Gen-TV Studios announced that this development season they plan to nearly double the number of pilots they will order. Ross Chin, Vice President of Gen-TV Studios explains "A typical pilot season would consist of between 20 and 30 pilots ordered; many of which will never air. This development season will be be ordering more than that, probably around 40-50 pilots in total." "And that is in addition to other projects we are hearing pitches from for our streaming site and our first run division."

According to Chin "and at least 20-25 of those pilots this year will be hour-long drama pilots" which confirms earlier reports about Gen-TV trying to focus on drama development this year as they have successfully launched several comedy programs this past year. He cautions however "We will still develop a number of comedic pilots too, so who knows what the final schedule will look like."

Here is a rundown of the pilots ordered today:

Comedy:

"Say Uncle!": This half-hour sitcom pilot focuses on a single, playboy type 20-something who suddenly becomes the legal guardian to his sister's infant daughter following her arrest on tax evasion charges. The comedy would follow his attempts at becoming a good parent and how this impacts his single life as a young 20-something with a corporate job. This series has been given a cast contingency; meaning it cannot proceed to series until the network has approved a cast. This is a typical method used by networks when they are unsure about a the concept of a pilot and want assurances that they can utilize a star who is familiar to audiences and might attract high viewership based on their name.

"Awakened" (Comedy Version): This high concept comedy pilot follows a woman who awakens from a twenty year coma to find her entire life is different. Her husband has married her sister after being granted a divorce; they have had three children; her best friend is now gay and married to her brother; and she is now twenty years older. This hilarious and at times poignant sitcom has a cast contingency attached to it. In a unique twist, the studio is developing two versions of this pilot; this one as a comedy and a second version as a straight drama. Both versions are being produced by separate production teams but will utilize the same cast playing characters with the same basic story and names.

"Skating By": This half-hour sitcom pilot focuses on two best friends; Liza and Andrea (casting pending for both) who are both in their mid-20's; live together in a spacious loft and are both skaters in a professional ice capades style show.

"Year In Her Life": This sitcom pilot focuses on a year in the life of a teenage girl as she comes of age. It follows her life with her widowed mother and two teenage brothers. This series also has a cast contingency and network script approval pending.

"The GLAM Life": This ensemble sitcom pilot from the producers of "Parks & Recreation" and "30 Rock" focuses on the team from "The GLAM Life"; a party planning company that specializes in planning lavish, over the top parties the the ultra-rich.

"Designing Women" (Reboot): Gen-TV's second attempt at rebooting the 80's classic. Gen-TV tried to reboot this series back in 2011 with Lucy Liu cast in a supporting role; however that pilot never made it to air. Sources indicate that Gen-TV intends for this reboot to have a primarily black cast of characters.

"Drama":

"Awakened" (Drama Version): A dramatic version of a pilot Gen-TV is also developing as a comedy. It focuses on a woman who awakens from a twenty year coma and must deal with the changes that have occured since she was injured twenty years ago. See above for more details.

"The Guardians Above" (working title): This high concept fantasy/spiritual drama focuses on a group of angels tasked with helping human beings on earth deal with crises of faith; life threatening issues and other problems that require the intervention of a guardian angel to help them.

"Caged Animals": This prison themed drama focuses on the staff of a Zoo and their daily lives caring for the animals and dealing with the patrons of the zoo.

"Getting Out" (working title): This crime procedural drama is focused on the parole board and the process of deciding if an inmate has earned early release from prison.

Gen-TV Pilot News:

A Hollywood Now Report

Here is the latest news and updates about Gen-TV's pilot season. The hottest pilot this season for Gen-TV seems to be "The GLAM Life", a single-camera comedy from Michael Schur (The Good Place, Parks & Recreation) starring Eliza Coupe about a party planning company who specializes in parties for the ultra-rich. The focus of the series would be the staff members of the party planning company. Since being ordered to pilot in January it has become the hottest pilot on the block, garnering internal support. Sources tell us that Eliza Coupe being cast is a strong sign that Gen-TV plans to order this to series.

Meanwhile, one pilot not gaining traction is a planned reboot of "Designing Women" which like the ill-fated 2011 attempt at rebooting has failed to secure a cast and has run into script issues. A rewrite was ordered from Linda Bloodworth Thomason, the creator of the original series, but that has left Gen-TV's Ross Chin "unsatisfied". Looks like it might be curtains for this one.

Meanwhile, another comedy pilot "The Boss Man" has been ordered to undergo rewrites to turn the male lead into a female lead, and the title will change to "The Boss Lady." This pilot centers on a unmotivated and emotionally beat down staff of office workers suddenly brought back to life when they learn their tyrant of a boss has been reassigned to another division and they meet their new boss, an utterly unqualified nobody who in a case of mistaken identity quickly cements herself as the boss lady and finds herself in the process. Gen-TV is reportedly seeking a known female in her 30's or 40's for the role.

and lastly, it seems Gen-TV is about to pass on a reality pilot called "The Food Fight" which is described as "a real life Hunger Games style competition featuring contestants battling for the last scrap of food while stranded Survivor-style on a deserted island."

Gen-TV has officially (and rather unexpectedly) ordered straight to series a spin-off from "Deadly Visions" tentatively called "Jack of All Trades" which will reportedly star Steven Weber as "A psychic, magician con-man turned private investigator who uses skills learned from his years a magician and con-man to solve outrageous mysterious and assist the police in solving unusual crimes they don't have the time or manpower to investigate."

In order to introduce the character of Jack Ridley, he will be featured in an upcoming two-part episode of "Deadly Visions" (which will air this summer) as a backdoor pilot. Sources say that a script for the pilot had previously been written and approved by Gen-TV, thus why they have ordered the series straight to series. Insiders inform us that the order is for 13-episodes, but of course if ratings justify it they could order additional episodes.

A Hollywood Now Expose:Gen-TV's Bubble Shows---Pros, Cons and Final Predictions of Unrenewed Shows

Gen-TV Network has seven series left waiting to be renewed or cancelled; most of these will likely wait until Gen-TV's Fall 2017 schedule is finalized and announced at UpFronts in May. Hollywood Now has been doing some extensive digging and here is what we've found out and what we are predicting is going to be the outcome for these series:

"Outside The Lines":

PROS & CONS:

PROS:

The premise of this series, about a retired Nascar driver who takes over child rearing his siblings children seems to have mass appeal, with a built in revenue stream from Nascar, which in a unlikely deal has become an official sponsor of the show, underwriting the entire first season for extra publicity. This may be the deciding factor in the series future, does Nascar see any benefit from underwriting another season? Do the ratings of the series add any benefit to Nascar?

Seemingly, there is something about this show that could appeal to parents and children. Men and women could find reason to enjoy this show; Men might watch for the frequent guest appearances from professional race car drivers, who often cameo as themselves. This is one feature the show has going for it; in fact, a recent episode featuring Danica Patrick as herself ranks as the series highest ratings peak so far.

CONS:

This ultra-traditional sitcom starring Jason Priestley as a retired race car driver turned dad to three children hasn't done particularly well in the ratings and has gotten very little critical support. Most reviewers called it redundant or unoriginal. A particularly harsh review from the NY Times called it "The freshmen series this season that is least likely to warrant your attention, your time or any further discussion beyond this review." "The writing is flat, lifeless and poorly conceived as to feel amateurish." "There is not an original idea in the entire pilot episode and it seems like there isn't anywhere else for this show to go."

In terms of freshmen comedy on Gen-TV this season, "Outside The Lines" is the lowest rated (excluding already cancelled series "Keke Fabulous" and "Going South"). Among all of Gen-TV's comedy series currently airing, it ranks only above "Threesome" and "Every Other Weekend", both of which already got renewed.

These ratings surely aren't giving Nascar any reason to think the show deserves another season of their support; it is likely costing them money. Gen-TV can probably do better ratings wise, and certainly critically. There does not seem to be much benefit to keeping this series.

Predictions:

Hollywood Now doesn't see much future for this show. The only potential saving grace would be Nascar deciding that the series fanbase is large enough to justify underwriting another season; basically giving Gen-TV a comedy to air for nearly free. Should this happen, it is likely Gen-TV would bury this show on Friday or Saturday night; freeing up a more lucrative timeslot for a series with more potential.

But bottom line is that a renewal is not likely here.

"Peretti Rules":

PROS:

One of the few Gen-TV comedies that gets universal acclaim from critics; Peretti was nominated for the National Board of Review Award and won a Critics Choice TV Award for writing the show. Most of Gen-TV's acclaim comes from its drama series and TV Movies.

Female viewers seem to like this show, and it is the #4 rated series overall among Female Viewers 18-25.

CONS:

Outside of that demo, nobody else is watching this show. It is one of the lowest rated shows on TV among Male viewers, and dead last among Black Viewers 18-25.

Chelsea Peretti has other jobs including her gig on Fox's "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" and comedy specials for Netflix, Epix and HBO. She has already expressed a desire to have a less hectic schedule and has predicted cancellation for the series. It seems unlikely that a show whose lead star is asking for cancellation would be renewed.

Predictions:

Despite low ratings and star woes, we think critical acclaim will save this show and it will return in mid-season as a filler show. Sources tell us that Ross Chin is a fan of the series and sees potential in keeping it.

"The Malones":

PROS:

The pros of this show are plenty, though it may not seem so at first glance. First off, it is the spin-off of TV's #1 rated show by far, "The Mallory's of Jefferson County". It generates more publicity than any other show on TV, aside from "Mallory's" and is doing epically well overseas, where it is breaking ratings barriers in many countries; including Germany, England, Australia and Japan.

CONS:

Nobody is watching this show stateside. Ratings are at embarrassingly low levels and for a show this expensive to produce the benefits of overseas success may not be enough to save it.

Critics have abandoned the show. After glowing reviews in the first half of the season; particularly for its pilot episode the notices have trended downward since then.

Perhaps the biggest con; sources indicate that Ross Chin is not a fan of this show and with him driving programming decisions now, it seems unlikely it'll return. We hear that Chin sees this show as wasted potential and wants to free up space on the schedule for newer programs that will generate more publicity stateside.

Prediction:

This show is extremely unlikely to return for another season. It is as close to cancellation as it gets.

"Code Of Ethics":

PROS:

It has a huge movie star attached as its lead star in Hillary Swank. It has mega-producer Stephen Bochco attached as its Executive Producer. This is the man that created "LA Law", "Hill Street Blues" and "NYPD Blue"; a man that knows police drama.

CONS:

Ratings have been inconsistent; some episodes trending as high as 15 million viewers and some as low as 5 million viewers. They seem to have steadied out in recent months. But that may not be enough.

Sources are telling us that Executives at Gen-TV are generally supportive of this show and see the potential in a renewal, but that development of pilots will be the deciding factor for this show.

Prediction:

It really is a case of 50/50 with this one, it could go either way. Our final prediction tells us that it'll get cancelled though.

"Gen-TV Original Movies":

Our predictions haven't changed for this one since we first reported on this topic nearly a month ago.

Pros: Gen-TV has won numerous awards for its stellar slate of original films and mini-series. They are one of the few broadcasters that still produce TV films at this volume. Numbers for many of these films have been stellar.

Cons: Gen-TV still has not renewed the franchise for another season. In fact they seem to be downshifting focus on these projects.

Our sources at Gen-TV are telling us that no decision has been made about this franchise, but that Ross Chin generally likes the idea of producing TV films. He has a film background as he did an internship at Paramount Features in the early 1990's; so he could really do some good with this franchise and attract some A-List directors.

Prediction: Despite Ross Chin's connections we still think the network will still produce TV films and mini-series, but at a drastically reduced volume. And probably on a much cheaper budget.

"Intrusion":

Pros: Joan Allen leads a fantastic cast. A stellar and cleverly produced premise.

Cons: Nobody watches this show, nobody talks about this show. Ratings for the show are near the bottom of the TV Ratings. Only CBS's "Ransom" and CW's "No Tomorrow" rank lower than "Intrusion".

Gen-TV's seven series "on the bubble" has just been reduced to five as the network shows faith in two sitcoms that have struggled to find an audience and renews "Peretti Rules" and "Outside The Lines" for second seasons.

A renewal for either show seemed unlikely at best, but a combination of development issues and budgeting restraints this year saved them. "Outside The Lines" was saved when NASCAR decided to continue underwriting the series for an additional season; essentially providing Gen-TV a sitcom to air for free. Meanwhile, "Peretti Rules" was saved by Ross Chin who "sees great potential in this program and has big plans to help it improve its ratings."

Gen-TV has made a decision regarding three reality series, cancelling one while renewing two others. The network has officially pulled the plug on struggling reality series "Bizarre Jobs" after three seasons; while renewing stronger performing series "The Bidding War" and "Food Showdown".

"Bizarre Jobs" premiered in January 2016 and was an instant smash, often garnering ratings over 40 million viewers and getting demos in the high 12's; but in recent months ratings have slipped to under 10 million viewers; and has hit series-lows several times this season. One reason this series may have suffered such ratings erosion is that Gen-TV aired reruns on an almost non-stop basis, resulting in viewer fatigue.

Meanwhile, both "The Bidding War" and "Food Showdown" have remained consistent performers, and will return in the fall. "Food Showdown" for its third season, "The Bidding War" for its fourth; as it is airing its third season starting in April.

In what could be the biggest development this pilot season, Gen-TV has ordered a 30-minute pilot presentation for what would be the first official reboot of "E.R." since the series went off the air in 2009 after 15-seasons. The original E.R. produced in part by Stephen Spielberg, was the biggest hit of the 1994-1995 season, quickly becoming TV's #1 rated drama and making huge stars out of cast members George Clooney, Julianna Margulies and Noah Wyle.

A combination of eroding ratings, skyrocketing production costs and general decline in quality lead to the series cancelation after season 15 and its absence has left a hole in the lives of viewers who came to love the series; and in the TV landscape where its hybrid of action, character-drama and issues oriented writing has been lacking.

The pilot presentation is being filmed in Los Angeles in a couple weeks and will be based on a script by Amelia Kelley (Hollywood Law). It centers on the daily lives of the emergency staff at Cook County Hospital in Cook County, Chicago, Illinois. It would feature a few of the original cast members reprising their roles, though as recurring characters and would mostly feature a brand new cast of characters.

Sources tell us that Gen-TV is looking at this as a potential replacement for "Trauma Center" which despite being renewed for a third season which will air this summer, is apparently the source of frustration with Gen-TV Executives who are not pleased with its slow ratings progress and even slower cultural impact.

Wednesday, March 29th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Boston General inched up to 7.98 million viewers and 1.3/4 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week. Half hour: 1.157/1.345

At 9pm, a new episode of CIA Files scored 14.09 million viewers and 3.4/12 among adults 18-49, even with last week. Half hour: 3.362/3.464

At 10pm, week eleven of Amazon amassed 6.96 million viewers and 1.4/4 among adults 18-49, even with last week. Retention from its lead in was 49% among total viewers and 41% in the demo. Half hour: 1.567/1.301

Thursday, March 30th Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Behind the Scenes jumped to 8.47 million viewers and 2.1/7 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week. Unrounded: 2.124

At 830pm, a new episode of Blended slid to 6.41 million viewers and 1.6/5 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week. Unrounded: 1.626

At 9pm, a new episode of The Hughes Family garnered 10.35 million viewers and 2.8/8 among adults 18-49, even with last week. Unrounded: 2.756

At 9pm, week ten of Growing Up at 30 slid to 6.31 million viewers and 1.6/6 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week to a new low for the second straight week. Unrounded: 1.631

At 10pm, a new episode of TAKEN: Phoenix eased to 9.49 million viewers and 1.5/6 among adults 18-49, down a tenth from last week. Half hour: 1.541/1.497

Friday, March 31st Ratings - YTN
At 8pm, a new episode of Secret Service ticked up to 5.06 million viewers and 0.7/3 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week . Half hour: 0.698/0.713

At 9pm, a new episode of Serve and Protect: Detroit rose to 8.94 million viewers and 1.0/3 among adults 18-49, up a tenth from last week. Half hour: 0.985/1.040

At 10pm, a new episode of Cops of New York remained at 10.15 million viewers and 1.2/4 among adults 18-49, even with last week. Half hour: 1.212/1.234

Although the administrators and moderators of the Sitcoms Online Message Boards will attempt to keep all objectionable messages off this forum, it is impossible for us to review all messages. All messages express the views of the author, and neither the owners of the Sitcoms Online Message Boards, nor vBulletin Solutions Inc. (developers of vBulletin) will be held responsible for the content of any message.
The owners of the Sitcoms Online Message Boards reserve the right to remove, edit, move or close any thread for any reason.